In town for some shopping and feeling meh because there's nothing GOOD to eat? Well fret not, because there's finally something decent for you to have for brunch, lunch or even dinner! The answer lies in Seasons Bistro, a modern American restaurant that replaced the rather quiet Applebee's at TripleOne Somerset (just behind the Cineleisure carpark), offering seasonally-fresh dishes. I was invited to try out their brunch menu one day and I was just really satisfied and impressed with what Chef Benjamin have created in a bid to win over people's tastebuds (and hearts).

I really liked the decor and the space. Naked light bulbs, well-lit with big windows, and some paintings of the New York cityscape. There's also a big bar at one side of it where you can sit at for a drink.

This was the brunch menu we tasted from. Prices are very very reasonable for the portions and location.

Of course, some moscato never hurt. The Brunch Specials feature the 2+1 Moscato promotion at only $35++.

For starters, we had the Pan Seared Foie Gras ($16++) with pain de mie, chocolate ganache, bacon jam, caramalized bananas and granola crumbs. While it might seem to rich for brunch, the flavors actually played well together to make for an appetizing start. The foie gras was really yummy, especially when it melts in your mouth along with bits of granola. The bacon jam added the savoury sweet touch, accented by the bananas. Every bite is a flavour explosion!

The Grilled Portobello Salad ($15++) with St Maure Terroir, tomatoes, beans, candied walnuts, pickled onions, bacon crisp and red wine vinaigrette is a classic light salad for those wishing to watch their waistline, but also wanting to indulge (its the weekend!) with bacon. The greens were really fresh and crisp.

Something which might have been odd, but definitely something you should try at will be the Season's Hot Wings ($12++) with blue cheese dip, mango & passion fruit catsup & veggie crudite. The wings were hot and sour - just the way I liked it. For some it might be not as spicy as they liked. To me its just right! I loved the hot wings. Probably can eat half a dozen by myself.

Then we got to the brunch mains. First, the Montreal & Lox ($15++) which is made with toasted bagels, cream cheese, capers, onions, smoked salmon, tomatoes and greens.

I really enjoyed the soft chewy bagel with little balls of cream cheese, and the contrast with the briney smoked salmon with little capers. At $15 it is also very value-for-money, in my opinion.

We also had The Lumberjack ($18++) which is eggs anyway, smoked bacon, sausage, pancake and maple. Sweet, savory and just all round comforting. This is the way pancakes should be consumed! I didn't find any fault with this again.

Then, the default Seasons Breakfast ($17++) with mushrooms, tomato, sausage, eggs any style, home fries, smoked bacon and toast. Classic American done with high quality ingredients that you can taste. I really enjoyed this and wish I can have it every other month!

Last of the brunch mains would be the Freedom Toast ($15++) with has egg-dipped bread, smoked bacon, brie and maple. Notice how they've Americanized the name? Still, good dish. I can't decide if this or the pancakes are better. I think they are pretty on par!

For desserts we also tried 3. There's the Season’s Deconstructed Banana Split ($12++) with battered and caramalised bananas, chocolate and vanilla ice cream, granola nut crumbs, fresh strawberries, nutella & fresh cream. A really simple dessert, but something that most people will enjoy. I sure did.

Something a little bit more special - try the Mojito Tart ($12++) which is toasted coconut tart with mint lime curd & rum cream. Even though I can't really taste much of the coconut or rum cream, the textures of the tart were well-mixed and baked.

Lastly, the Season's Carrot Cake ($12++) which as you can see, is a huge slice of goodness and choke full of walnuts. Even though $12 is a bit steep, when you have a carrot cake craving, you have to have this. Because it is so classic, you will guaranteed be satisfied with it.

Great brunch spot to go to next time you are in town. Affordable prices, super comfortable ambiance and just generally really good food in one of the most frequented locations in Singapore. For those hankering for some classic American breakfast or desserts, Seasons Bistro is the place to go. I know I'll be back.

Want to get a smartphone for your second line? Want to buy one for your parents so they can watch Youtube on the go? Your previous phone's lost/broken/old? Or sick of queuing for XiaoMi and realizing that it hangs on you when you try to multi-task? Then get the Nokia Lumia 635. Retailing for S$239 ONLY, it is probably one of the most affordable touchscreen color 4G smartphone that has all the components you'll need. A 5 megapixel camera, bluetooth, 8GB internal storage with additional storage option, and standby time of 648 hours! If you sign up with a telco, it is $0.

A #Lumia635 unit was sent for me to review, and I was really impressed by a few things.

1. It's incredibly affordable for that amount of technology.
2. It is very light yet not 'plasticky'
3. The design is awesome - both the neon orange cover, and the user interface and design.

I played around with it for a few days, and while I found the camera to be rather basic compared to what I'm used to (HTC One M8, iPhone), the rest of the phone delivers superbly especially on speed. Did not hang on me at all, and scrolling up and down was smooth.

I really liked playing around with the Windows Tile on the Nokia Lumia 635.

I also think the Windows Tile makes for a great user experience. The typing and navigation was really idiot-proof and easy to take up -- my dad took to it like fish to water.

Everything was thought of nicely. There's even a swipe down notification bar like all the other smartphones now for you to access shortcuts and etc.

There are also some great apps now on the Windows Apps+Games Marketplace that I've tried.

1. 6tag to surf and look at Instagram photos. Very nicely designed, so you don't miss the original version at all.

2. Nokia Glam Me to touch up your photos and make sure you look your best. Perfect for selfies!

3. Bing Health & Fitness to track your activity levels. Now you have no excuse not to do a few extra km when you jog!

If you are considering a new phone but not going to drop $900 to a k, consider the Nokia 635 at a fraction of the price. It is a simple, elegant and unassuming smartphone that does its job well.

If you’ve been to Plaza Singapura or Junction 8, you must have seen Saybons, the casual French dining café. They have been around for a while now, but did you know that a Singaporean couple started it? They are truly entrepreneurs in the F&B scene! All along I thought this was a franchise from overseas. In fact, the lady boss trained at Cordon Bleu but decided to strike it out on her own with soup and crepes creations inspired by the French, who are so known for their thin pancakes. I reckon how the name Saybons comes about is from the French phrase, “c’est bon”, which means, “it is good”! And I think Saybons is not just good, it's also good for you.

Their soups and crepes are already quite healthy right (all soups fall between 30-170 calories on their own) but Saybons has joined the Healthier Dining Programme officially as a partner and as such offers 10 Healthier Meal Combos that is made with 4 skinny crepes and 4 soups, plus a banana and water all for $11 nett. That’s a really good deal for a well-balanced meal with quality ingredients.

The skinny crepes are healthier because they only have half the amount of cheese used in the regular ones, and includes fresh ingredients like lettuce, tomatoes & potatoes. I tasted all 4 soups and 2 skinny crepes during my visit.

I really enjoyed the mushroom cheese skinny crepe and found it to be no less satisfying compared to a regular crepe with more cheese! The sautéed mushrooms are prepared fresh every morning at the shops and gave the crispy thin crepes a savory mushroomy flavor. The other ingredients, like greens, are also very generously packed into the slightly sweet and light crepe. The packaging also makes for very convenient munching -- no mess. Apparently the mushroom and cheese crepe is a perennial best seller among customers. I'm not surprised. Singaporean tastebuds are easy to predict.

Here’s a photo of what a 4-course Skinny Crepe meal looks like, in the flesh.

We also tried the vegetarian Margarita skinny crepe that comes with cheese, tomatoes, potatoes, lettuce and onions. While this is good on its own, I'll suggest you make it a meal by also having a mushroom soup or the thicker carrot coriander soup. This way I feel makes for a more flavourful experience of Saybons.

For soups, we found out that other than the mushroom (1st in pic from left) and tomato soup (4th), the carrot coriander soup (2nd) and carrot (3rd) also has no cream in it, which helps lighten the calorie count.

I can't decide which is my favorite -- I think it might well be a tie between the thick and strong flavored mushroom soup and the tangy and light tomato soup. But I always order pumpkin soup if I'm in a restaurant, and Saybons' pumpkin soup does match up to restaurants. My least favorite I guess would be the carrot coriander, which is too much of a purée for me. That has its merits though because the ingredients are so... clean and healthy. See what I mean by I can't choose? If I were you, I’ll just go with what I am feeling that day.

I love that Saybons is offering affordable, quick and fuss-free French fare that is now healthier for everyone to try. View their menu here. I’ll definitely recommend that you check it out next time you walk past them! You can find them at:

I'm sure everyone is by now familiar with the #icebucketchallenge -- your social newsfeed will be dominated by celebs, famous people and even your friends/family doing it. How it works: your friend tags you to dump ice water over yourself and film it. If you don't do the challenge you donate $100 to the ALS fund. Otherwise do it on video and tag 3 friends with the challenge.

Oh, the simplicity. I think it is a brilliant mechanic that worked to raise awareness and cash for the donation/cause of ALS in the States through the power of social videos. So far it has raised more than $15 million.

However, back in Singapore I think it has started to lose its original intention, since most people are doing it because it is simple, fun, you get to upload a video of yourself without feeling weird and you get to challenge others.

So, I have a PHILIPS Airfryer. What do I do with it? That's the question on my mind. Sure I can fry stuff (with 80% less oil!) and even roast stuff (after all it works like an oven)... and then it led me to think, so can I bake with it? And that's when Steph suggested the Matcha Nutella Zebra cake, from a recipe she found online at Baking Taitai. I had a look at the recipe, and found it easy enough so I bought ingredients for it speedily, and experimented!

The results were amazing and beyond my expectations.

I really just followed the recipe to the T, except I did not use fancy french butter and took 45-50 minutes (15 mins more than the recipe) to bake it at 160 degrees (stated). Use a chopstick to poke it and if it comes out dry, it's ready. The timing will vary.

I experimented with the Airfryer quite a fair bit because it is just such a wonderful piece of equipment. For these 2 items, there isn't even a recipe! You just assemble if needed, put them into your PHILIPS Airfryer for about 10-15 minutes at 180 degrees, take it out, put it on a plate, and enjoy! Here's what I've made with it so far.

1. Alexia Sweet Potato Fries

I quite liked the Sweet Potato fries from Alexia, which I bought from FairPrice. No oil needed! It was naturally sweet and already 'oiled', I think. I also bought some shoestring fries to pop into the Airfryer, which someone did not work as well (maybe because I did not add too much oil?)

2. Bacon wrapped avocados.

I learned on that day how to cut out avocados, and I think most people do not think about using these in an Airfryer, but there's always a first for everything. It turned out really well -- the bacon sizzled and the oil was enough to cook it, and the avocado provided a nice creamy counterbalance to the saltish bacon.

Here it is. They were super easy to make and delicious to eat as a snack, or even for breakfast with some toast and eggs!

Hope you will also try and experiment with your Airfryer. It is so fun!

Salt grill and Sky bar boasts of magnificent views, delicious food and lovely company. Why? Because when you have the first two, you are most likely to be in the company of people whom you enjoy. That's what I love about dining, really. It's often times more than just the food alone, but the person or people you eat it with. Since I can't be in front of you at the dinner table though, I'll have to just describe what's on it at Salt grill at ION Orchard.

Firstly, the location. You've to get to the ION Art Gallery before taking a lift up to the 55th floor in a superspeed lift. Then you'll get to see the restaurant in muted lights and voices perched high up our glittering city. The restaurant had undergone a recent renovation, and looks more contemporary and spacious.

Source: FoodNews PR

This was the view - see it in person for a higher resolution!

The food was prepared by Chef Mathew Leighton who hails from Sydney. He had trained under Luke Mangan (hence the plates with the name Luke). Here's a bit about him:

"Newly-minted as the Executive Chef at Salt grill & Sky bar, 27 year-old Mathew Leighton has been a longstanding part of celebrity chef Luke Mangan’s culinary brigade. The youngest Executive Chef within the group, Mathew’s last stint prior to joining Salt grill & Sky bar was as Executive Chef at Salt tapas & bar in Singapore."

We had some drinks to start with. For me, a Salt cooler (non alcoholic) made with strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, lychee, apple and cranberry juice, lemonade. ($14) It was refreshing, light and very summery. Plenty of anti-oxidants and vitamins too!

And then, the meal itself!

First, the amuse bouche, which is a coconut broth with Sydney spice, reminiscent of green curry, actually! Sydney Spice is actually made with kaffir lime leaves, lemon myrtle, turmeric, ginger, galangal, chilli, garlic and salt. That's a lot of spices for a little cup of soup! Flavorsome and perfect to start the meal.

For starters -- I really enjoyed the sashimi of kingfish, ginger, eschalot & goats feta ($33). It's not easy to do kingfish well, and have it light and fresh without being fishy or stale. The ginger and eschalots really made a difference!

We then had some baby vegetables, goats curd, ginger bread crumbs, dried black olives ($31). Honestly I will skip this if I ever do go back, because I didn't find it exceptional. It really was just vegetables put together.

You should instead focus all your energies on having this ‘Glass’ Sydney crab omelette ($33) instead. There's some enoki mushroom & herb salad on top of the fluffy and sweet omelette, which is surrounded by miso mustard broth. I think everyone agreed that this was really outstanding. And how very Australian, come to think of it!

Then something which was nice, but paled in comparison with the omelette -- the tea smoked quail ($31) with almond cream, prunes, grains, grilled shallot and sorrel. Quite forgettable. The tea taste was slightly lost, though the quail was done just right. Only if you have a hankering for quail should you order this, I suppose.

What most people will aim for will be their 300-days grain fed Sirloin from Rangers Valley, New South Wales ($74). Diners will be shown a table of raw beef to admire the marbling of fats (I assume so, because that's what I did).

The steak was cooked medium rare, and came with some Moroccan spice, sauté spinach, eggplant puree, and red wine sauce. This was really good. There are no words to describe a perfectly good steak, is there? If you are a steak lover, Salt Grill's one of the places to try. Steak's pricey, but worth it. I liked the solid yet tender bite, with beefy juices that runneth over.

Some mustards and etc to go with your steak is provided!

Lastly, to end of the deliciousness, a spot of dessert! We had Luke’s liquorice parfait ($18) that was surprisingly acceptable, seeing how apprehensive I was about liquorice. There was only a hint of it, and the lime jus provided a tangy contrast to the icy parfait.

And for cocktail lovers, don't forget to order some of their sweet creations. These will be perfect during sundown too. We had the oldie but goodie Grasshopper ($18) made with creme de menthe, creme de cacao white and milk and a decadent Chocolatini ($18) made with vodka, white chocolate sauce, green apple syrup and creme de cacao white. What can I say? There are more like liquid desserts, with the alcohol being quite strong but smooth within. These are really worth the price!

I enjoyed myself tremendously at Salt grill and Sky bar, and have also heard many good things about it from couples and friends looking to celebrate special occasions (birthdays, anniversaries, promotions) who found the location and food to be just right for the occasion. If you're thinking of bringing someone special out for dinner, consider Salt Grill and Sky Bar for a romantic and gastronomic evening!

Also check out their Lunch Set Menu and Executive Lunch Set Menu. Perfect for corporate diners, the lunch set menus at Salt grill & Sky bar provide a convenient, fuss-free option with 2 or 3 courses available. The menu ranges from $45++ to $80++ per person and is available on weekdays from 11am to 2pm.

About me

Welcome to my blog

I'm Alexis Cheong - A Singapore food and lifestyle blogger. Passionate about good food, travel and beauty or gadgets. This blog is a place where I want to share all the things I love with over 17,700 views per month. Feel free to contact me to say hello or find out how we can collaborate.